Rauanheimo continues investing in dry bulk handling in Finnish ports

Above: Bulk operations at the Port of Koverhar.

 

 

Oy M. Rauanheimo Ab operates as a stevedoring, ship clearance and forwarding company at the ports of Kokkola, Oulu, Tahkoluoto (Pori), Koverhar (Hanko), Vuosaari (Helsinki) and HaminaKotka.

 

Founded in 1884, Rauanheimo has gained thorough knowledge of stevedoring, forwarding and shipping activities over the years and is today Finland’s foremost port operator in dry bulk handling and Russian transit services.

 

Rauanheimo has been operating at the port of Kokkola since its foundation 136 years ago and that is still the main port where the head office is situated. The company employs about 200 workers and has an estimated turnover of €130 million year 2020. The total annual volume is estimated to exceed 10mt (million tonnes).

 

 

The Port of Tahkoluoto.  

 

Rauanheimo offers total logistics services in stevedoring, forwarding, ship agency, Russian transit, customs declaration, container traffic, general and bulk cargo handling. The company also offers added-value services such as transports, handling of the goods at departure and arrival, documentation of the entire chain and customs clearance. Rauanheimo designs competitive logistics solutions that will save customers time and money by combining different services for the customers’ needs.

 

Using its ability to adapt, change and chase new challenges, Rauanheimo has undergone significant growth in recent years and has operations also in Russia. Close collaboration with customers allows Rauanheimo’s dedicated team of professionals to develop tailored solutions that add genuine value to its customers’ logistics chains.

 

Rauanheimo is a dependable partner thanks to three basic principles that have remained unchanged for the last 135 years: family culture, expertise of employees at every operational level, and focus on the customer.

 

Rauanheimo is strategically expanding operations in Finnish ports, allowing them to serve customers in the areas of the customer’s choice.

 

The major new dry bulk projects are in the ports of Tahkoluoto in Pori, Port of Koverhar in Hanko and the port of Mussalo in HaminaKotka. Total investments come to around €66 million.

 

The Port of Tahkoluoto. 

 

The project completion and significant increase in the cargo handling capacity will provide substantial growth of the cargo flows, particularly bulk, through the new terminal. The new bulk terminal will be put into operation in the autumn 2020.

 

 

Rauanheimo’s CEO Joakim Laxåback. 

 

Rauanheimo’s CEO Joakim Laxåback shares the company’s plans: “We are building a large automated bulk terminal consisting of effective facilities and equipment for handling big bulk cargo flows. Through automation of the terminal operations we create opportunities for moving the goods quickly, securely and energy-efficiently. The objectives of ensuring quick turnaround time for the wagons, short ship waiting time, as well as handling cost optimization will be achieved at the terminal with utilization of the high-quality equipment manufactured by ThyssenKrupp and advanced technologies.

 

 

Wagon tippler at the Port of Tahkoluoto. 

 

The terminal is equipped with two wagon tipplers for unloading wagons, heating terminals for frozen cargo in wagons, stacker, reclaimer, shiploader, water spreading systems and covered conveyors. Our terminal will provide customers with a full range of services such as discharge of wagons, storage of cargo, magnet cleaning, crushing, quality control at the sampling station, as well as loading of the vessels. Paying much attention to the environ­mental issues, we have implemented advanced technologies of dust minimization, including effective water injection during unloading and storage of bulk commodities, water spraying and dustless covered conveyors.”

 

Rauanheimo started operations in Tahkoluoto in February 2018. The important competitive strengths of Tahkoluoto include its perfect accessibility due to both the deep fairway (15.3m) and excellent railway connection, which is a part of the Finnish–Russian railway network. Rauanheimo has developed good co-operative relationships with third parties, one of which is VR Transpoint, Rauanheimo’s partner regarding railway transportations.

 

Rauanheimo believes that the implemented investment project will significantly increase the scale of its operations in Tahkoluoto, as well as positively contribute in the development of the port.

 

 

The Port of Mussalo. 

A new investment project started in the beginning of the year to increase covered terminal and unloading capacity and increase efficiency in Mussalo bulk terminal.

 

Rauanheimo has invested in bulk warehouses of totally 32,000m2 and operates totally in 48,000m2. All the terminals are equipped with unloading terminals for Russian wagons and with conveyor systems from quay to warehouse also for import traffic. A new added wagon unloading station will be finished in August 2020. The new station will increase the wagon unloading capacity with 1–1.5mt per year. The terminal is suitable for fertilizers, grain, limestone-, kaolin- and other similar bulk products. The draught of 15.3m enables loading and unloading of larger vessels such as Panamax and Capesize class.

 

In order to achieve efficient handling of railroad wagons, Rauanheimo will, together with the Port of HaminaKotka, invest in two additional railway tracks at the port for a total area of 1,200m.

 

 

Aerial view of the Port of Koverhar. 

Since 2015, Koverhar Harbour that used to belong to a steel mill has been run by the Port of Hanko, the fastest-growing port in Finland with excellent connections to continental Europe and over 100 years of know-how.

 

Rauanheimo is the operator in the port and the goal is to develop the port of Koverhar and its operations in the long term for both transit and domestic traffic and for various product segments. At the end of 2019, Rauanheimo started large-scale bulk handling through Koverhar. The aim is to handle approximately 1.5mt of bulk products during the first 12 months. Rauanheimo invested in cargo handling equipment at Koverhar and the Port of Hanko has invested in basic infrastructure.

 

The tailored equipment includes, for instance, of: two Mantsinen 300 port cranes which are the largest hydraulic cranes in the world; Komatsu and Volvo wheel loaders; and Komatsu dump trucks in the size category of 170 tonnes. The unloading of the wagons is done using two gantry undercarriage excavators. This are tailored made together with Volvo in Sweden and Ab A. Häggblom Oy, which is a modern engineering workshop based in Finland.

 

The large investments made by the Port of Hanko in the infrastructure of the port is completed and now in efficient use with growing traffic. This enables the realization of an effective transport of railway wagons to Koverhar. In 2020 the rail traffic to Koverhar is expected to reach approximately 1.5mt.

 

Rauanheimo sees Koverhar as an excellent opportunity also for the domestic export and import traffic and discussions related to this have already started with different parties.